Lyme Hall, Disley, Cheshire, England

We finish our journey through Cheshire in the north-east of the county and with a view of the largest house in the county. This is Lyme Hall situated near Disley and just within the boundaries of the Peak District National Park. The house itself is sited in extensive parkland and both house and parkland are now owned and managed by the National Trust. Incidentally, it featured in a recent adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice by the BBC.

What you see in the photo is a view of the Palladian frontage within the landscaped grounds of the house gardens. However, the frontage belies the fact that the building essentially dates from the 1570's and any similarity with Knutsford's Tatton Hall is only skin deep. That's a situation resulting from the reverence of the now departed Legh family for the efforts of their forbears. It was a deterioration in financial fortunes and an ability to recruit staff that caused the handover of the estate to the National Trust in 1946, further evidence of that reverence.